The term “renewable energy electric power systems” as used herein refers to utility-size electric power systems that utilize a large number of interconnected photovoltaic modules to form a solar farm or power plant, or a large number of interconnected wind turbine generators that form a wind farm or power plant.
Utility-size (ranging from 5 to 100 megawatt (MWe) output capacity) solar photovoltaic power systems comprise a large number of solar photovoltaic power collectors, such as solar photovoltaic modules, that supply DC electric power to collocated DC to AC inverters that convert the DC power into AC electric power.
A utility-size wind power system comprises a large number of electrically interconnected wind turbine generators. A wind turbine driven generator assembly can be a wind turbine with its output shaft suitably coupled to an electric generator. Various types of generator systems can be coupled to a wind turbine. One such system is known as a Type 4 industry designated wind turbine generator power system where the generator is a synchronous permanent magnet generator having a variable frequency, variable voltage output that is supplied to a rectifier with the rectified output DC link supplied to a DC to AC inverter. The inverter output current is then transformed through a line transformer that transforms the inverter output voltage level to the grid voltage level.
For either a solar or wind renewable energy, utility-size power system, the power system components are spread out over significantly more land than a conventional residential or commercial size power plant thus making physical visualization and control of the power system a challenge beyond that of the typical one line centralized control boards used for conventional size power plants.
The following features may be present in apparatus and methods according to the invention:
monitoring and control systems for a high voltage, renewable energy harvesting network in combination with a centralized grid synchronized multiphase regulated current source inverter system wherein the renewable energy harvesting is distributively power optimized within the harvesting network by a combination of DC-to-DC converters;
high voltage energy harvesting in combination with a centralized grid synchronized multiphase regulated current source inverter system, and a visual monitoring and control system for a utility scale renewable energy system; and
power collection, conversion, monitoring and control systems for renewable energy, utility-sized power systems that can include a three dimensional, visually-oriented, virtual reality display environment for centralized input and output control and monitoring of the power systems by the systems' operators.